Safety sealing means for fire extinguishing systems



Dec. 12, 1939. E. ALLEN HAL 2,183,208

SAFETY SEALING MEANS FOR FIRE EXTINGUISH ING SYSTEMS Filed- Dec. 28, 1936 'INVENTORS 5corr #44:

' The present invention:.relates to forinstanc, as are; employed in oil tankers or SAFETY" fire extinguishrng. systems andhasfor an object to provide. means for preventing. the introduction of v the system foreign matter. which might obstruct or prevent itfrom operating.

Our invention. is ,particularlyadapted for use on;fire extinguishing systems for oil tanks such,

ships-whichcarry crude roll and other inflam- 'mable1 .fiuids., .In such installations it is .custernary to providemeans for introducing a spray of:fireeXtinguishing-fluid incase offire. Pref 'erably' the; spray formsfla :lolanket across the hatch ormanhole of thetank tosmother the Y elty and scope of the invention will be pointed I I out in theclaims. a

firegby cutting off the entrance of air into the tanks; When the. tanks are .to be cleanedo'utit is. necessary to ridthem of fumes, and to this endit is'customaryto introduce live steam into walls..-of-the..tank, after which a Workman may "enter and clean out the sludgein the bottomof the .tank..- The steam is introduced under com- ,parative'ly-vlowi pressure, but itis. apt to findits wayi intoI-the fire extinguishing line and may 'condense-therein;forming pockets of Water. In

coldiilweather, this water will. congeal and ob- "safety disk ruptured and struct theflow of fire extinguishing fluid therethrough. [Condensation is also apt to collect i'ngthe 'controlvalves of the system and lock them against operation if they are exposed to a freezing temperature. 1

An object of the present inventionlis .t o pro-l vid'e a fire' -extln'guishing systemrwitha safety sealing-ihad close to th'e spray nozzle designed 'td preVententrance of steami or other foreign matterWithout-preventing free discharge of the extinguishing fluid wheneverdesired.

" A-mo're' specific .object of the invention is to provide a" sealing disktto cut oii' the discharge imum pressure empl oyed'in forcing 'theextin "giuishingfluidjinto' the tank. g I I ,.'.'.A furtherfobject of the invention is topr'ovide means for controlling the rupturing of the disk sothatia flap will be burst o utfof the body of i the disk, providing a wide opening there through,

but the,-.fiapitse lfiwill remain attached at o e I side to the body of -the disk.

Another .object. of the inventionis to provide a :cageradaptedyto. catch'and retain the .flap

55; should-itbysany chance be torn loose, so; aslto I Figure 1 is a View in side'elevation of .the Walls thereof in' section;

' the line :4 Z of Fig. 2;" i

all, of the cylinders of the battery. The cylinders l5 discharge into a l-FJN E IE- A TENT )QFF C- SEALING MEANS FOR. FIRE Exp TIVNGUISHINGSYSTEMS- t- "scott. E. iin, Glen Ridge, and John Elmer nn- 4 nert, Springfield, N. 3 assignorstdC-O-Two Fire Equipment' company, Newark, N. J., a

corporation of Delaware ,t g Ap isea ecemberzs,1936, Serial'No.117, 8 68. j"

' recla ms. (01. 16911)' prevent from being; carried into the spray noz-f zle and obstructingthe discharge; H A further object is to provide a'safety sealing .head which is readily accessible and 'WhiCh may be opened .at any time toreplace a-ruptured disk With-a fresh'one,

. Still another object of the invention is to arrange the sealing head insuch relation to. the

- spray-nozzle'that any moisture, which might be Will appearhereinafter we shall now describe a preferred embodiment and thereafter thenov:

In the accompanying drawing; g

our-im'-. proved fire extinguishingsystem for protecting a tank, s'aid tankgbeing shown fragmentally with i Fig. 2 is a view ins ection ofthe safety sealing head, showing. a sealing disk in normal sealing condition, the section being taken onthe line 2-'2 of Fig.1; I

Fig. 3 is a similar view of the safetysea'ling head; but only. partially in section, showing. the

Figgl. isa view in: transverse section of 'the safety disk carrier, the section being taken on Referring to 1, .we show a tank provided with a hatch ll normally closed by a cover l2. v The cover is bolted or otherwise secured in closed ;.position.

The tank is pro-v tectedby a fire extinguishing system and in the at "It! a portion of particular system illustrated, carbon dioxide is used as the extinguishing fluid, the carbon di oxide being stored under pressure in liquid form in a battery. of cylinders l5. Each cylinder is provided with a discharge head it? which may be of; the type-shown in Patent No. 2,051,589, 1

issued August, l 8 1936.- Each. discharge head ;isprovided with .an operating button H which maybe manuallydepressed to releasehthe fluid from the battery. 'Il"he di'scharge heads Mare interconnected by a pipe H! in such manner that when fluid is released from any cylinder it will cause the automatic release ofjfluidfrom pipe I lin -v 20 whichv conveys the extinguishing fluid to'a j dischargenozzle 22 within'the hatch: H. A baffie 23' is. arranged "to spreadthe discharging fluid .across the hatch .so as, to. .blanketzahd;

smother any fire within the tank. At a suitable point in the line there is a valve provided with an operating lever 26 for controlling the flow. This valve is particularly useful when two or more tanks are served by the same battery to determine to which tank the flow will be directed.

Close to the hatch H, but outside of the same, is our improved safety sealing head 28 which forms part of the discharge line connecting the battery of cylinders IE to the spray nozzle 22. The head 28 is shown in detail in Figs. 2 and 3. It comprises a cup shaped casing 30 whose open end is normally closed by a screw cap 3| enclosing a chamber 32. There is an inlet port 34 leading into the chamber, which port is connected by an elbow 35 to the line 26. An outlet port 36 leading from the chamber 32, is connected to the spray nozzle 22 by an elbow 3'land a short length of pipe 38 which passes through the wall of the hatch. Within the chamber 32 and surrounding the port 34 is an annular flange 39, the end face of which provides a seat for a sealing disk 40. The sealing disk is clamped against the end of a tubular carrier 4| by means of a clamping ring 42 screwed upon the carrier. The outer end of thecarrier is closed and is provided with an enlarged head 44 which has threaded engagement with the inner wall of the chamber 32. A lug 45 projects from the outer end of the head 44 and is squared so that it may be engaged by a Wrench to screw the carrier "in wardly and clamp the sealing disk 46 firmly against the seat formed on the flange 39. The bore of the tubular carrier is preferably of the same diameter as and in register with the bore of the flange 39. The end face of the carrier forms a sharp corner 48 with the inner wall of the carrier, except for a portion at one side which is rounded, as indicated at 49 in Fig. l. This portion preferably extends through an arc of about 90 degrees. The tubular carrier is formed with perforations 50 to permit fluid to pass out of the bore of the carrier into the chamber 32.

When steam is admitted into the tank H! (by means not shown) it may find its way through the outlet port '36 into the chamber 32 and also through the openings 50111130213118 interior of the carrier 4|, but it will be blocked from entering the main discharge line 20 by the sealing disk 40, As a rule the pressure of the steam is not more than a pound or two and the disk is strong enough to resist this pressure and even a considerably higher pressure. Were the disk not present the 1 steam would find its way into the discharge line 20. If the valve 25 happened to be closed its furtherprogress in said line would be barred thereby. However, there would be an accumulation of condensation in the pipe 20 and in the valve 25 which if frozen would seriously obstruct the passage of extinguishing fluid there-through.

If by chance the valve 25 were open the steam might force its way into the discharge heads 56 and eventually block the samewith ice. Such diificulties are avoided by the use of the safety sealing disk Mi. Any condensation of moisture in the chamber 32 or in the carrier 4! will simply drain out of the port 36 to the nozzle 22 and thence into the tank.

The disk 40, while strong enough to resist rupture under the highest steam pressure that is likely to be applied in the tank Ill, is nevertheless not strong enough to resist the pressure of the carbon dioxide or other extinguishing fluid admitted to the line 20. Under the pressure of this fluid the disk will be burst open and the sharp corner 48 will provide a line of cleavage extending through an angle of approximately 2'70 degrees, while the rounded portion 45 will not cut the disk but will leave an attaching part, so that a flap 4011, as shown in Fig. 3, will be forced out of the disk and will hinge about the rounded part 49. The flap will then be flattened by the outrush of extinguishing fiuid against the inner wall of the carrier 4|. If by any chance the flap 40a should be torn loose it would be trapped in the bore of the carrier 4| since it could not escape throughthe relatively small perforations 50. The fluid discharging through the opening in the disk will pass out through ports 50 into chamber 32 and thence into the discharging nozzle 22. After the extinguishing system has been operated the cap 3l' may be unscrewed, the carrier 41 withdrawn, and a new sealing disk clamped thereto in place of the ruptured one. The parts may then be restored to the position shown in Fig. 2.

While we have described our system as applied to a tank on a ship it will be obvious that it may be employed in any situation where it is desirable to prevent admission of steam or other matter into the discharge line. It will also be understood that while we have described the system as applied to the use of carbon dioxide as'an extinguishing agent it may also be used with other extinguishing mediums which are discharged under a pressure higher than the steam pressure which is used to cleanv out the tank or other enclosure protected by the system. Thus, while we have described a preferred embodiment of our invention it will be understood that this is to v be taken as illustrative and not limitative and that we reserve the right to make various changes in form, construction and arrangement of parts without departing from the spirit and scope of our invention as pointed out in the claims;

1. In combination with a source of fire extinguishing fluid under pressure, a discharge port for said fluid, a sealing disk normally closing the port but rupturable by the pressure of said fluid, an annular support for the disk having a sharp corner providing a line of cleavage along which a flap of the disk will be cut out as'the' disk is ruptured, said sharp corner being interrupted at one side by a rounded corner of suflicient extent to leave a hinge connection between the flap and the disk.

2. In combination with a source of fire extinguishing fluid under pressiue, a discharge port, a sealing disk normally closing the port but rupturable by the pressure of said fluid, atubular support for the disk having a sharp corner at the junction of its inner wall and end face providing a line of cleavage along which a flap of the disk will be cut out as the disk isruptured, said sharp corner being interrupted at one side by a rounded corner of suificient extent to leave a hinge connection between the flap and the disk,

said tubular support being perforated to permit escape of the'fluid therethrough when the disk is ruptured but being adapted to trap the flap should the flap be accidentally torn free from the disk,

3. A safety head for the discharge line of fire extinguishing fluid under pressure, said safety head comprising a casing formed with a fluid chamber having an inlet port and an outlet port, a carrier movable within the chamber toward the inlet port and having threaded engagement with. 1|

the casing, said carrier having a tubular stem, a disk for closing the inlet port, said disk being removably mounted on the free end of the stem, and means for screwing the carrier into the chamber to clamp the disk against the inlet port, said disk being rupturable by the pressure of said fluid, said stem being perforated to release the fluid to the outlet port; when the disk is ruptured, said stem providing a sharp cornerforming a line of cleavage along which the disk will rupture, forming a flap, said sharp corner being interrupted by a rounded corner of sufficient extent to leave a hinge connection between the flap and the disk.

4. A safety head for the discharge line of fire extinguishing fluid under pressure, said safety head comprising a casing formed with a fluid chamber having an inlet port and an outlet port, a carrier movable within the chamber toward the inlet and having threaded engagement with the casing, said carrier having a tubular stem, a disk for closing the inlet port, said disk being removably mounted on the free end of the stem, and means for screwing the carrier into the chamber to clamp the disk against the inlet port, said disk being rupturable by the pressure of said fiuid,l-said stem being perforated to release the fluid to the outlet port whenthe .disk is ruptured, said stem providing a sharp corner extende ing through an arc of more than 180 degrees and forminga line of cleavage along which the disk will rupture, forming a flap, said sharp corner being interrupted by a rounded corner of sufficient extent to leave a hinge connection between the flap and the disk.

5. In a safety head to be used in a discharge line connected to a source of fire extinguishing fluid under pressure, including an inlet port, an outlet port, a seat for a safety disk surrounding said inlet port and a safety disk on said seat, and means supported by said head for supporting said safety disk on said seat, said means includ-' ing a cutting edge for cutting said disk under fluid pressure from said source.

6. In a safety head to be used in a discharge line connected to a source of fire extinguishing fluid under pressure, including an inlet port and an outlet port, a seat for a safety disk surrounding said inlet port, and a safety disk on said seat, and means supported by said head for supporting said safety disk on said seat, said means including a cutting edge for cutting said disk under fluid pressure from said sourceand comprising a perforated cylinder for trappingany portion severed from said disk.

7. In a safety head, the combination of a main body substantially cup-shaped and provided with seat, and a safety disk, said member being provided with a cutting edge for cutting said safety disk, said member also being provided with perforations in communication with said outlet port.

8. In combination with a, source of fire .ex-

tinguishing fluid under pressure, a discharge line, a safety head connected in said line having inlet and outlet ports, a seat for a safety disk formed in said safety head; adjacent said inlet port, a cup-shaped safety disk carrier movably mounted in said safety head with its open end extending toward said seat, for movement to and awayfrom said seat, and a safety disk removably secured upon the open end of said carrier and adapted to be pressed against said seat, said disk having a tensile strength to withstand a substantial pressure against said disk through the outlet port but rupturable under higher fluid pressure from said source through the inlet port, said cup-shaped carrier being ported to provide a communication between said inlet and outlet ports after said disk has been ruptured.

9. In combination with a source of fire extinguishing fluid under pressure, a discharge line, a safety head in said line having inlet and outlet ports, a seat for a safety disk adjacent said inlet port, a safety disk, and a perforated cup-shaped member adjustably mounted in said safety head with the edge of its open end engaging said disk for holding said safety disk on said seat.

10. In combination with a source of fire extinguishing fluid under pressure, a discharge line, a safety head in said line having inlet and outlet ports, a seat for a safety disk adjacent said inlet port, 'a safety disk, and a perforated cup-shaped member adjustably mounted in said head for holding said disk on said seat, said cup-shaped member being perforated intermediate of its ends to establish communication between said inlet and outlet end of said cup-shapedmember constituting a trap to catch the portions of the disk torn off when the disk is ruptured.

SCOTT E. ALLEN.

JOHN ELMER RENNER'I.

CERTIFICATE OF CORRECTION.

Patent No. 2,18 ,20 December 12, 19 9.

' SCOTT E. ALLEN, ET AL.

It is hereby certified that-error appears in the printed specification of the above numbered patent requiring correction as follows: Page 5, sec-- 0nd column, line h9, claim 10,after "outlet" insert ports upon rupture of said disk, the unperforated; and that the said Letters Patent shouldbe read with this correction therein that the same may conform to the record of the case in the Patent Office.

Signed and sealed this 50th day of January, A. D. 19110.

Henry Van Arsdal'e,

(Seal) cting Commissioner of Patents. 

